First, let me say that there are many different ways in which to embed Flash content on your website, including using nested HTML tags, browser detection, and/or JavaScript. There are also different Flash movie formats, but most people choose the SWF format, so we will discuss how to show SWF files. I do not regularly need to work with Flash, as I can do almost everything I want with JavaScript, however, there have been clients who demand its use. And my experience with Flash and SWF files has led me to chose SWFObject as my favorite technique for embedding Flash content on a page.

When embedding Flash content on a page, you will encounter issues in at least these 3 areas:

Is Flash supported in the client browser?

Flash needs to be installed and enabled in the client browser, and you need to handle situations when it is not.

How does this browser handle Flash ?

Flash is a proprietary technology and different browsers have chosen to support it in differing ways, especially detecting Flash versions and rendering alternative content when the flash player is not present.

Is the required Flash version support?

Your code was written for Flash 9, but the client browser only has Flash 8. The user should be asked to upgrade their Flash version.

I am normally adamant about following standards and accessibility practices, which dictates that I not use JavaScript, but an HTML technique, such as found in the List Apart Article: Flash Satay: Embedding Flash While Supporting Standards. This method worked great for me, and until I started working on secure servers (SSL) where this technique causes IE 6 to show a security warning, it was my first choice.

When the Satay method failed me, I then looked to Adobe, the owner of the proprietary Flash technology. Adobe supports several methods for embedding Flash: Adobe Flash Detection Kit. I was hoping that since I was not able to use the more accessible Flash Satay method, that I could at least use officially supported technologies. Unfortunately, I was still receiving the same security warning on secure servers in IE 6 (although, the Adobe site claims that their script works around this).

Then, I asked myself it the IE 6 security warning was really a serious issue. And It is a huge issue, as the site is most likely secure, because it contains sensitive information. Users of a site, where their browser frequently warns them that they not secure, will be less likely to trust it that site. And even though the warning is bogus, your users wont care.

The only technique successfully defeating the IE 6 security warning bug, is SWFObject, which is why I choose to use it above all others. It is also simple to use, and easy to setup alternative content. Here is a simple example:

This little code snippet will embed the mySWF.swf inside the flash-container element and assign the embedded SWF the id of embeddedSwfId. The create DOM node will have width and height of 950 and a background of black. Lastly, we tell the SWFObject that we require version 9.0.115&rsquot; of the Flash player.

In addition to all the issues above, you may encounter server-related issues when requesting the Flash content (usually a SWF file) as a result of compression and/or caching techniques. Fortunately, these issues are well documented and you will most likely find a reasonable solution with a quick google search.